Sound producing dolls and animals have been well-known as applied to childrens' playthings and provide an added dimension of realism. Many of these toys included voice mechanisms that were actuated by doll movement and/or gravity. Typical of such devices were the dolls shown in U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,303,605 and 3,413,756. Another doll was designed to emit sounds in response to optical sensing, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,675,519. Still other playthings reacted to a pull-string or mechanical windup spring for producing audible sounds.
The sound actuation of the previously mentioned dolls however, was not initiated by an interaction with the dolls' hair. Although U.S. Pat. No. 1,264,341 discusses noise generation by withdrawal of a tape from within the mouth of a figure head; that patented device was not concerned with hair actuation.
Furthermore, the sound actuation of the aforementioned toy devices were not directly related to corresponding learning processes or combined with a teaching concept such as improving the manipulative skills required for hair brushing and combing.